EP0507432A2 - Récipients isolés - Google Patents

Récipients isolés Download PDF

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Publication number
EP0507432A2
EP0507432A2 EP19920300788 EP92300788A EP0507432A2 EP 0507432 A2 EP0507432 A2 EP 0507432A2 EP 19920300788 EP19920300788 EP 19920300788 EP 92300788 A EP92300788 A EP 92300788A EP 0507432 A2 EP0507432 A2 EP 0507432A2
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
lid
recess
container
tray
insulated
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Withdrawn
Application number
EP19920300788
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
Other versions
EP0507432A3 (en
Inventor
& Clark Limited Poeton
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
POETON and CLARK Ltd
Original Assignee
Poeton & Clark Ltd
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Poeton & Clark Ltd filed Critical Poeton & Clark Ltd
Publication of EP0507432A2 publication Critical patent/EP0507432A2/fr
Publication of EP0507432A3 publication Critical patent/EP0507432A3/en
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
    • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
    • B65D81/00—Containers, packaging elements, or packages, for contents presenting particular transport or storage problems, or adapted to be used for non-packaging purposes after removal of contents
    • B65D81/38—Containers, packaging elements, or packages, for contents presenting particular transport or storage problems, or adapted to be used for non-packaging purposes after removal of contents with thermal insulation
    • B65D81/3825—Containers, packaging elements, or packages, for contents presenting particular transport or storage problems, or adapted to be used for non-packaging purposes after removal of contents with thermal insulation rigid container being in the form of a box, tray or like container with one or more containers located inside the external container
    • B65D81/3827—Containers, packaging elements, or packages, for contents presenting particular transport or storage problems, or adapted to be used for non-packaging purposes after removal of contents with thermal insulation rigid container being in the form of a box, tray or like container with one or more containers located inside the external container the external tray being formed of foam material
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
    • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
    • B65D81/00—Containers, packaging elements, or packages, for contents presenting particular transport or storage problems, or adapted to be used for non-packaging purposes after removal of contents
    • B65D81/02—Containers, packaging elements, or packages, for contents presenting particular transport or storage problems, or adapted to be used for non-packaging purposes after removal of contents specially adapted to protect contents from mechanical damage
    • B65D81/05—Containers, packaging elements, or packages, for contents presenting particular transport or storage problems, or adapted to be used for non-packaging purposes after removal of contents specially adapted to protect contents from mechanical damage maintaining contents at spaced relation from package walls, or from other contents
    • B65D81/107—Containers, packaging elements, or packages, for contents presenting particular transport or storage problems, or adapted to be used for non-packaging purposes after removal of contents specially adapted to protect contents from mechanical damage maintaining contents at spaced relation from package walls, or from other contents using blocks of shock-absorbing material
    • B65D81/113—Containers, packaging elements, or packages, for contents presenting particular transport or storage problems, or adapted to be used for non-packaging purposes after removal of contents specially adapted to protect contents from mechanical damage maintaining contents at spaced relation from package walls, or from other contents using blocks of shock-absorbing material of a shape specially adapted to accommodate contents

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to insulated containers for biologically degradable material, that is to say organic material that is subject to decomposition or deterioration when exposed to e.g. ambient temperature for any significant period of time.
  • the invention is principally though not exclusively concerned with insulated meal containers of the type which contain all that is necessary for a complete meal including various food dishes, drinks, cutlery, glasses and the like.
  • insulated meal containers of the type which contain all that is necessary for a complete meal including various food dishes, drinks, cutlery, glasses and the like.
  • the invention relates also to an insulated container for medical use, e.g. for transporting tissue or blood samples, which is compact but nevertheless maintains its contents cool for an extended period of time.
  • US-A 4024731 discloses a cooled container comprising a body to which a lid is connected by hinges. Both the body and the lid are of sandwich construction comprising two outer layers between which is a layer of an insulating foam. Defined in the lid is a number of recesses in which complementarily shaped containers are received. These contain a freezable liquid and have a central aperture by means of which the containers are removably secured in position by locks provided within the recesses.
  • the container disclosed in this prior specification is in the nature of a picnic box and can not also be used as a tray. It is also relatively expensive, both because it is of sandwich construction and because it is necessary to manufacture separate apertured freezable liquid containers. Whilst it is said that these containers may contain a beverage, it is troublesome to remove them from the lid due to the necessity of releasing the locks on the lid.
  • an insulated container for biologically degradable organic material comprises a tray and a removable lid which may be fitted thereon, the tray comprising a one-piece moulding of foamed plastics material affording a plurality of recesses accommodating respective organic material receptacles and the lid comprising a one-piece moulding of resilient foam plastics material affording at least one recess in which a heat sink is push-fitted and retained in position by the resilience of the plastics material.
  • the insulated container may be for medical use and in this event the organic material receptacles will contain blood, tissue samples or the like.
  • the heat sink may comprise a block of cooled material of high thermal capacity or a container containing a cooled liquid of high thermal capacity and/or high latent heat of melting.
  • the insulated container is a meal container containing a complete meal which is ready to eat and that a portion of the container constitutes a tray from which the meal may readily be eaten.
  • the heat sink comprises a container, preferably of known commercially available type, containing a beverage, e.g. a can or a bottle of beverage, such as wine, water or fruit juice.
  • the beverage container will be chilled before being inserted into the lid and is positioned optimally to maintain the food in the food receptacles at a low temperature.
  • the fact that the beverage container is positioned in the lid rather than in the tray means that the tray may be relatively small and thus readily accommodated on the user's lap.
  • lid and the tray are constituted by respective one-piece mouldings of foamed plastics material means that they are inherently very light and cheap to produce and have highly insulating properties.
  • the lid has two recesses accommodating respective beverage containers, containing e.g. water and wine, since this not only increases the choice of beverage available to the user but also results in an increased thermal capacity of the heat sink whereby the food will remain chilled for a longer period of time. It is preferred also that the lid affords an access recess communicating with the or each beverage container recess by means of which the user may gain access to the beverage container(s) and remove it manually from the associated recess against the resilience of the plastics material which was deformed on insertion of the beverage container.
  • the access recess may also communicate with a storage recess accommodating a package which contains cutlery and/or condiments and is a push-fit within the storage recess. The accommodation of the cutlery and/or condiments in the lid rather than in the tray is a further factor which permits the tray to be relatively small and thus readily received on the user's knee.
  • the tray and lid engage when they are fitted together, one of which carries an upstanding peripheral flange which is received in a corresponding peripheral recess in the other.
  • the organic material e.g. the food
  • the plastic material which desirably has a thickness which at no point is less than 10mm. This results in the food being extremely effectively insulated from the atmosphere whereby heat permeates through the container to the food at such a slow rate that pre-chilling of the food coupled with the relatively large thermal capacity of the chilled beverage container(s) results in the insulated container being able to retain food chilled to a temperature at which no significant biological degradation occurs for an extended period of time of many hours.
  • the meal container is of overall cuboidal shape, that is to say rectangular in plan and elevation, and comprises a main body 2 and a lid 4 which may be fitted together to define an internal space for the accommodation of a meal.
  • the main body 2 is adapted to be used as a tray supported on the user's knees and will be referred to below as a tray.
  • the tray 2 comprises a relatively shallow one-piece rectangular moulding 6 of expanded polystyrene material, which is typically only 30 to 40mm thick and is accommodated within an outer decorative open-topped cardboard container or shell 8. Secured to the tray 2 is a webbing strab 10 with a fastener, in this case a buckle 12, at each end.
  • the strap 10 may be secured to the tray in many ways but in this case it passes through an aperture (not shown) situated adjacent each end of the base of the shell 8 on its longitudinal centre line and is thus accommodated between the moulding 6 and the shell 8 over most of its length and is optionally secured to one or both of them, e.g. by adhesive.
  • the lid comprises a relatively deep one-piece rectangular moulding 14 of expanded polystyrene material which is typically 100 to 150mm deep.
  • the moulding 14 is accommodated within an open-bottomed outer decorative cardboard container or shell 16 whose outer wall extends down substantially beyond the moulding 14.
  • a webbing fastening or carrying strap 18 is secured to the lid 4 and passes through four spaced holes (not shown) on the longitudinal centre of the top of the shell 16. Two of these holes are situated adjacent respective ends of the shell 16 and two are situated closer to the centre.
  • the free ends of the strap 18 pass out through the holes at the ends of the shell 16 and the strap is situated between the moulding 14 and shell 16 and is connected thereto by adhesive between each end hole and the adjacent holes. Between the two inner holes the strap 18 extends outwardly in a loop 20 which constitutes a carrying handle.
  • the tray moulding 6 has a flat upper surface 22 surrounded by a peripheral recess 24, 5 to 10mm wide and deep.
  • Formed in the surface 22 is a number, in this case five, of shallow recesses 26, each of which, in use, receives the base of a respective food receptacle 28 (shown in phantom lines).
  • the surface 22 also has one or more, in this case two, shallow circular recesses 30 whose diameter is the same as that of associated drinking glasses which will be described below.
  • a peripheral flange 32 Extending around the outer edge of the lid is a peripheral flange 32 whose end surface is stepped and carries a further flange or bead 34 on its outer edge whose width and depth correspond to those of the recess 24 in the tray.
  • a generally rectangular space which has a base 36 and a depth which is only a fraction of that of the entire lid.
  • Formed in the base 36 is a number of recesses, of which two, designated 38, are elongate and parallel and dimensioned to receive a proprietory beverage bottle as a push-fit. In use, these recesses 38 receive and retain a respective beverage bottle 40 (shown in phantom lines), e.g.
  • each recesses may be smooth, in this case they are each provided with a number of ribs 42 which are preferentially deformed when the beverage containers are inserted.
  • Communicating with at least one side, and in this case both sides of each recess 38 is an access recess into which the user may insert his fingers for the purpose of engaging the beverage bottles 40 and removing them against the resilient force exerted on them by the deformed polystyrene foam material.
  • an access recess 44 communicates with the outer edge of each recess 38 and a common transverse access recess 46 extends between the inner edges of the two recesses 38.
  • the common access recess 46 intersects a further storage recess 48 which extends parallel to the recesses 38 and, in use, accommodates a package 50, shown in phantom lines, containing cutlery, condiments and the like which is also push-fitted into position and retained there by the resilience of the foam material.
  • the base 36 of the recess also affords two circular recesses 52 in which two drinking glasses 54, shown in phantom lines, are push-fitted and retained by the resilience of the foam material.
  • the base 36 also carries a number of shallow integral projections or pads 56 dimensioned to engage the lids of the food receptacles 26 carried by the tray to ensure that they do not become dislodged during transport.
  • receptacles 26 containing chilled food are inserted into the recesses 28 in the tray and project above the upper surface 22 of the tray.
  • Chilled bottles 40 of e.g. wine and mineral water are push-fitted into the drink recesses 38 in the lid and a package 50 containing cutlery and condiments is push-fitted into the storage recess 48 in the lid.
  • a drinking glass 54 is then push-fitted into each circular recess 52.
  • the lid is then inverted and placed on the tray and the bottles, cutlery and glasses are all retained in position within their respective recesses by the resilience of the deformed foam material.
  • the edges of the lid and tray, i.e. the bead 34 and recess 24, are of matching complementary shape leaving no gap between them.
  • the free ends of the strap 18 are secured to the strap 10 by means of the buckles 12 and the handle 20 may then be used to carry the entire meal container.
  • the food in the various containers is accommodated within the space defined by the lid and the tray and is maintained cool by the chilled bottles which act as a heat sink and are positioned in the ideal position for this purpose, namely above the food. Very little thermal energy passes through the walls of the container due to the highly insulative properties of the expanded polystyrene which is arranged to have a thickness which is at no point less than about 10mm, even at the base of the various recesses.
  • the food is maintained reliably chilled for many hours.
  • the lid is removed and the tray is sufficiently small, due to the fact that the bulky bottles are carried in the lid, that it may simply be positioned on the user's knees.
  • the glasses are removed from the lid and placed in the recesses in the tray and the bottles and cutlery are simply removed from the lid by hand and for this purpose access is gained to them by way of the access recesses 44,46.
  • the outer cardboard shells are not essential but merely desirable for aesthetic reasons.
  • the two straps may be welded or heat-sealed together, if they are made of heat sealable material, and this will act as a reliable tamper indicator.
  • the drinks containers have been described as bottles, any commercially available drinks containers may be used, such as cans.

Landscapes

  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Packages (AREA)
EP19920300788 1991-03-07 1992-01-30 Insulated containers Withdrawn EP0507432A3 (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GB919104819A GB9104819D0 (en) 1991-03-07 1991-03-07 Insulated containers
GB9104819 1991-03-07

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP0507432A2 true EP0507432A2 (fr) 1992-10-07
EP0507432A3 EP0507432A3 (en) 1993-09-01

Family

ID=10691155

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP19920300788 Withdrawn EP0507432A3 (en) 1991-03-07 1992-01-30 Insulated containers

Country Status (2)

Country Link
EP (1) EP0507432A3 (fr)
GB (2) GB9104819D0 (fr)

Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4024731A (en) * 1975-10-31 1977-05-24 Gott Mfg. Co., Inc. Insulated container with refreezable lid-mounted bottle
GB2127783A (en) * 1982-09-24 1984-04-18 Davis & Co Pty Food or like containers
DE8615645U1 (de) * 1986-06-10 1986-07-24 Coleman (Deutschland) GmbH, 6303 Hungen Geblasener Klappdeckel für Kühlboxen
EP0397607A1 (fr) * 1989-04-03 1990-11-14 Qts S.R.L. Conteneur isotherme et réfrigéré pour le transport de flacons de médicaments et du matériel s'y rapportant

Family Cites Families (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB330414A (en) * 1929-06-20 1930-06-12 Thermos 1925 Ltd Improvements in portable food-holders
US3406532A (en) * 1966-11-09 1968-10-22 Aladdin Ind Inc Food and beverage containers having integral compartments containing a freezable liquid
US4249392A (en) * 1978-05-22 1981-02-10 Shimano Industrial Company, Limited Constant temperature box
GB2113823A (en) * 1982-01-26 1983-08-10 Edward Risdon Pratt Thermally-insulated container
US4537044A (en) * 1985-01-11 1985-08-27 David Putnam Food storage container

Patent Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4024731A (en) * 1975-10-31 1977-05-24 Gott Mfg. Co., Inc. Insulated container with refreezable lid-mounted bottle
GB2127783A (en) * 1982-09-24 1984-04-18 Davis & Co Pty Food or like containers
DE8615645U1 (de) * 1986-06-10 1986-07-24 Coleman (Deutschland) GmbH, 6303 Hungen Geblasener Klappdeckel für Kühlboxen
EP0397607A1 (fr) * 1989-04-03 1990-11-14 Qts S.R.L. Conteneur isotherme et réfrigéré pour le transport de flacons de médicaments et du matériel s'y rapportant

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
EP0507432A3 (en) 1993-09-01
GB2253334A (en) 1992-09-09
GB9202006D0 (en) 1992-03-18
GB9104819D0 (en) 1991-04-17
GB2253334B (en) 1994-08-31

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